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Chegg Launches Online College Counseling Service
Chegg today announced the launch of a live, online platform designed to make college counseling accessible to more students. The platform will use Chegg's InstaEDU to connect students to a network of counselors, including alumni of the College Advising Corps, as well as professionals with experience as private college counselors and college admissions officers at universities throughout the country.
According to the American School Counselor Association, the average ratio of high school students to school counselors in America’s public high schools is about 471-to-1. And the Independent Educational Consultants Association reports that many private college counselors offer only comprehensive packages, which cost an average of about $4,000 per child. As a result, many students don't have access to the tools that can help them find and get into the right college for them.
With Chegg's college counseling platform, students can access an experienced college guidance counselor online at a cost of $24 per hour at launch. Chegg is also offering up to two hours of free college counseling to the first 10,000 first-generation, low-income students who sign up for free through ImFirst.org.
Chegg's platform connects prospective applicants with a network of counselors via video, audio and/or text. Students can speak with the counselors about the admissions process in general, receive guidance for school research and selection, and upload essays and applications for real-time, collaborative review.
Right now, students can reach counselors by appointment. In the future, Chegg expects to have counselors available on-demand.
About the Author
Christopher Piehler is the former editor-in-chief of THE Journal.